What to wear when outside...
During the past school year, we found that students who dressed in layers were the most comfortable when outside. In Forest School, we are taught to wear insulating, middle, and outer layers. If you are Mrs. McKinnon, you wear many middle and outer layers!!
Insulating Layer
Note: Long Johns work well for rainy days, too
Middle Layer
Outer Layer
Sun:
Rain:
Snow:
Just so you know, cotton is a poor insulating fabric. Animal fibres (like wool, alpaca, buffalo, qiviut, or camel) work well because they can be very wet and still continue to keep you warm. From our time outdoors last year, we discovered that warm hands and feet made a huge difference. Be prepared to send to school multiple pairs of mittens and socks. Depending on the weather, we may use two to three pairs of mittens in one day because they get wet.
Insulating Layer
- Long Johns: Either wool or synthetic
- Wool or thermal socks
- Thin pair of gloves (to use when eating and as a base layer in mittens)
Note: Long Johns work well for rainy days, too
Middle Layer
- Regular clothing such as:
- Long sleeved shirts and sweaters
- Jeans or durable pants
- Warm sweaters and vests
Outer Layer
Sun:
- Sunglasses
- Cap or hat of some kind
Rain:
- Raincoat with a hood or a rain hat
- Rain Pants
- Rubber Boots (Muck Boots worked best for us)
Snow:
- Winter coat large enough to add in a few extra layers
- Ski pants
- Many pairs of mittens (Some synthetic mittens freeze up if snow gets inside. We wear multiple pairs at once to stay warm.)
- Toque
- Scarf or face mask
- Muck Boots (can be worn in 3 of our 4 seasons) or Winter Boots
- Sunglasses (February and on)
Just so you know, cotton is a poor insulating fabric. Animal fibres (like wool, alpaca, buffalo, qiviut, or camel) work well because they can be very wet and still continue to keep you warm. From our time outdoors last year, we discovered that warm hands and feet made a huge difference. Be prepared to send to school multiple pairs of mittens and socks. Depending on the weather, we may use two to three pairs of mittens in one day because they get wet.